Sunday, June 23, 2013

Living Your Life Full of OS!M

My new principal is a ROCKIN CHICK. She's quiet, kind, solid, strong, honest, loyal, has integrity and is KIND, COMPASSIONATE and above all, RESPECTED. She further proves my point as of late...you don't have to be a BAD ASS, tough, mean and aggressive woman to be well respected and LOOK STRONG. In fact, recently , the most quiet and steadfast women in my life have been my accidental mentors. I say ACCIDENTAL because I usually think of the brass, tough and often outspoken women I know as having those ILLUSIVE qualities that I wish I had.
WISH NO MORE. WISH NO MORE.
As each year brings me more wisdom and as I make more mistakes and feel, well, ultimately more humble and naive...I realize that what I once thought as truth is now, frankly, the opposite. Untrue.

Where I once thought I could hold it all together in a nice, neat package, I've NOW realized that life is messy and all over the place and that's okay.

Where I once thought that mistakes were a sign of weakness, I NOW realize that mistakes are human. I am human. I can be a mess and that' s okay.

This year has been MY year. A year of fun, mistakes, challenges, risks and messiness. I've taken leaps off of mountains, stripped myself of things that I was holding on to for security and confronted people and issues in myself that have held me back.

So, when my principal talked to us about being open to O Shi$ Moments(OS! M)and being open to their possibilities of providing us with HUGE leaps of growth and FUN, I jumped in with both feet.

Fear?
Trepidation?
Unsure?

Certainly, but totally confident.

Now, how does this relate to running? To sport?
It has everything to do with running...and life...and relationships...as well as teaching.

It's up to us to create some Oh, Shi$ Moments in our lives. Let's stay fresh, make mistakes and be real, right out in the open. Be honest. Try new things, meet new friends.

Run a new race. Push a little harder. Fail. DNF and live to tell about it. Get injured and come back from it with a smile. Talk about good things with running. Uplift others.

I'm off to work on a PR on the 4th of July and possibly get lost again at a half marathon mountain race but the possibilities are totally exciting. Refreshing.

I had my own OS!M on the weekend. Bridesmaid for the first time at 50. Having to do the whole hair and makeup and dress thing. And don't get me started on having photos taken. But despite being incredibly uncomfortable about all those things, I had a wonderful weekend.